On Wednesday, December 4, videos were distributed on social networks showing a visit to the citadel in Aleppo (northern Syria) by Abu Muhammad al-Julani, the leader of the terrorist organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
The quality of the recordings does not allow us to draw clear conclusions. But apparently, al-Julani is indeed alive. Rumors about his death, circulated several days ago, were not confirmed.
On the evening of November 30, there were reports that Abu Muhammad al-Julani, the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, may have been killed in northern Syria as a result of a Russian airstrike. Websites linked to the Syrian government circulated footage showing a murdered man resembling al-Julani. However, as the Iranian website sahebkhabar.ir and other media noted on December 1, the picture may have shown a different person, and the photo may have been altered to create a greater physical resemblance to al-Julani.
The Hayat Tahrir al-Sham organization initially denied al-Julani’s death.
Abu Muhammad al-Julani (real name Ahmad Hussein al-Sharaa) is 43 years old. He was born in the village of Ar-Rafid, in the Quneitra region of southern Syria, in the Golan Heights. The parents were educated people: the father worked in the oil industry, the mother was a geography teacher. He studied media studies at the University of Damascus, but dropped out in 2003 and went to Iraq to fight against the Americans. He was arrested by the Americans and placed in Camp Bucca. Released in 2008. Joined the ranks of the Islamic State of Iraq group. Then he became an al-Qaeda activist. Later he was one of the commanders of Jabhat al-Nusra. Then – Jabhat Fatah al-Sham. Since 2017, he has been at the head of the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham organization. The US State Department designated al-Julani as a “highly designated terrorist” in May 2013 and four years later announced a $10 million reward for information leading to his capture. The reward remains valid for now.
On October 4, 2017, the Russian Ministry of Defense released information that al-Julani was seriously wounded as a result of a Russian air strike and lost an arm. However, a few days later, al-Julani released a video message refuting the information about the injury. Rumors about the death of al-Julani at the end of November 2024 in the Aleppo area were also not confirmed.